Saving a seat for Elijah part 2

Well, last night turned out differently than I thought it would!  God provided guests at a different time!  Instead of getting dinner guests we received dessert guests!  A bunch of people came over after the football game.  Pulled out cookies I had hidden in the freezer (white chocolate cranberry and pumpkin chocolate chip cookies). Thankfully I'd had some stocked away!  They both were soft even though they'd been frozen (sometimes I think they get dried out).  Great night playing Euchre, Hand and Foot and Sevens!

I had about 5 lbs of pork left over from dinner so I shredded about half and put it in the crock pot with BBQ sauce and a bit of water so it won't dry out.  Cooking it on low for about 3 hours.  Burger buns are rising right now for us to put the bbq on for dinner tonight!  The meat is smelling great already!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies (from Taste of Home)

Ingredients

• 1 cup butter, softened
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 3/4 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• 1-1/2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Directions

• In a bowl, cream butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. Combine the flour, oats, baking soda and cinnamon; stir into creamed mixture alternately with pumpkin. Fold in chocolate chips.
• Drop by tablespoonfuls onto greased baking sheets. Bake at 350° for 12-13 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove to wire racks to cool. Yield: 4 dozen.

Beautiful Burger Buns (King Arthur Flour Website)

• 3/4 to 1 cup lukewarm water
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large egg
• 3 1/2 cups King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon instant yeast

• 6 to 8 ounces lukewarm water
• 1 ounce butter
• 1 large egg
• 14 3/4 ounces King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose Flour
• 1 3/4 ounces sugar
• 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon instant yeast

Directions

1) Mix and knead all of the dough ingredients—by hand, mixer, or bread machine—to make a soft, smooth dough.

2) Cover the dough, and let it rise for 1 hour, or until it's doubled in bulk.

3) Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into 8 pieces. Shape each piece into a round 1" thick (more or less); flatten to about 3" across. Place the buns on a lightly greased baking sheet, cover, and let rise for about an hour, until very puffy.

4) If desired, brush buns with melted butter. Or brush lightly with egg wash (1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water), and sprinkle with sesame seeds.

5) Bake the buns in a preheated 375°F oven for 12 to 15 minutes, till golden. Cool on a rack.